The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for capturing or retrieving a metallic or magnetic stir bar from a container. The invention can be applied in a variety of different, non-limiting, settings such as in the aeration of wine, in conjunction with scientific lab equipment or in a manufacturing process where stir bars may be used.
One, non-limiting example where the invention can be used is in the aeration of wine. It has long been known that that allowing wine, particularly red wines, to “breathe” prior to consumption can improve the taste of the wine. Aeration processes generally involve allowing oxygen in the air to interact with the wine so that the flavor and aroma of the wine can open up. Processes and devices that can increase the rate at which oxygen interacts with the wine can reduce the time needed for the wine to breathe before drinking.
There are many different ways that wine can be aerated. One common way is to decant the wine by pouring out of a bottle and into a separate container where it can interact with the air for an extended period of time. The container may have a widened base so as to allow a greater surface area of wine to be exposed to the air. The length of time needed to sufficiently decant wine can vary significantly depending on several factors. Young red wines, for example, may need more aeration than older wines. Other factors that could impact the length of time needed for aeration may include the varietal types of grapes in the wine, storage conditions of the wine, wine temperature, additives in the wine, and even the style of wine making.
There has been a good deal of effort in the prior art to create a means to accelerate the aeration process. For instance, some devices attempt to accelerate the aeration process by bubbling air through the wine. Some examples of this are found in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,494,452, 4,785,724, and 5,595,104, which all describe variations of extending a tube into an open bottle of wine and then pumping air through the tube. Other devices attempt to pour the wine over an object having a large surface area so that the wine has greater exposure to the surrounding air while it is being poured. Other devices attempt to agitate the wine in order to mix with wine with air.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,332,706, which is incorporated by reference in its entirety herein, describes using a stir bar to aerate wine. In particular, the '706 patent describes a process of pouring wine into a container, placing a container on top of a stir plate, placing a stir bar inside the container, and changing a magnetic field within the stir plate so as to cause the stir bar to rotate within the container. The rotating stir bar is capable of creating a vortex within the wine, thereby increasing the surface area of the wine in contact with the air while also providing a stirring effect within the wine itself that further contributes to aeration. Furthermore, the stir plate may have a variable speed to allow a user to adjust the rate of mixing of the wine, and the method may be used with a variety of wine decanters types.
While the use of a stir bar has advantages over other aeration methods, until the present invention one potential drawback of this aeration method was that it could be difficult to remove the stir bar from the container. Once the container is removed from the stir plate, the stir bar inside the container can move freely inside the container. As the container is rotated or shifted during use or movement, the unsecured stir bar is able to move freely around the bottom of the container in a potentially distracting manner. Moreover, as wine is poured out of the container the unsecured stir bar has a high likelihood of falling out of the container. One prior attempt to address these potential drawbacks has been to configure a stir bar such that it cannot escape the container. While this configuration may prevent the stir bar from inadvertently falling out of the container, it also introduces several disadvantages such as not allowing the stir bar to be used in different container shapes as well as presenting difficulties in cleaning the decanter and stir bar.
While the use of a stir plate and stir bar can be very effective for aerating wine, the use of these devices is perhaps better known in the scientific community for use in a laboratory or scientific research environments. Interestingly, even though the use of a stir bar is well-established in the scientific community, the methods and apparatuses used to remove the stir bar from the container in this setting are inconvenient and have drawbacks.
In general, commercially available devices that aid in the removal of a stir bar in a lab setting are either of two types. The first type is a metal rod that is placed into the mixture in the container near enough to the stir bar to cause magnetic forces to securely connect it with the rod. As the rod is lifted out of the container, the magnetic attraction between the rod and the stir bar causes the stir bar to be lifted out of the container. One disadvantage of the use of a rod is that it involves introducing the rod into the mixed fluid in the container. As a result, additional steps are required to ensure that the equipment is clean and does not interact with the fluid or other mixed material in the container. Furthermore, if the neck of the container is significantly narrower than the base of the container, such as with an Erlenmeyer flask, a conical flask or some wine decanters, it may be difficult to position the rod closely enough to the stir bar to create magnetic attraction between them. Thus, the use of a rod to remove a stir bar has certain limitations and disadvantages.
The second type of device used in a lab setting to remove stir bars from containers is a magnetic hand-held device that a user places on the outside surface of the container. The magnetic attraction between the hand-held device and the stir bar causes the stir bar to be drawn against the inside wall of the container near where the hand-held device is positioned. Once the stir bar is drawn to the hand-held device, the user must then manually manipulate the device up the outer wall of the container until reaching the opening at the top. One disadvantage of this hand-held device as a method of retrieving a stir bar is that the user must continuously maintain the hand-held device against the outer wall of the container without moving it away from the outer surface of the container in order to maintain sufficient magnetic attraction between the stir bar and the hand-held device. This can be challenging if the profile of the outer wall of the container is curved or angled, such as with most wine decanters and also with some lab equipment such as Erlenmeyer flasks, volumetric flasks, or the like. An additional disadvantage of this device is that it can be awkward recovering the stir bar from inside the container because one hand may be needed to manipulate or control the device while the other hand is needed to hold the container so that the hand-held device remains in contact with the exterior wall of the container. As a result, it can be challenging to have a free hand available to retrieve the stir bar when using a hand-held device to retrieve a stir bar.
Because currently available methods and devices have disadvantages, it is desirable to have an improved method and device for collecting a stir bar from a container, for securely holding it at a location in the container, or for reducing the likelihood of it being inadvertently poured out of the container. More particularly, when a stir bar is used to aerate wine or other beverages it is desirable to have a method and apparatus for retrieving the stir bar or otherwise securely holding it at a location in the container so that the likelihood of the stir bar being a distraction or being inadvertently poured out of the container is reduced.